Freshman Paul McCoy led SMU with 16 points as the Mustangs lost their fifth straight conference game on Wednesday to the University of Memphis. The Tigers (19-3, 8-0) kept their spot atop the Conference USA standings, while the Mustangs (6-14, 1-7) continue to look for a way out of last place.

In front of a crowd of more than 5,000 fans, the Mustangs played with high energy for most of the game, keeping Memphis’ lead in single digits and only trailing by five at halftime. However, the Tigers went on to win 79-66, extending their conference win streak to 50 games.

“I loved the crowd. The enthusiasm was outstanding,” said Memphis head coach John Calipari.

At the beginning of the second half, SMU went on a run to ignite the home crowd. Three minutes into the half, SMU received a technical foul when two t-shirts were thrown on the court from the stands.

At the fifteen-minute mark, Derrick Williams launched a 28-foot desperation shot as the shot clock expired, and the crowd erupted as it fell through the net to bring the game to a 39-39 tie. Moments later, McCoy hit a layup to give SMU its first lead since the opening seconds of the game.

It was at this point that the Tigers seemed to settle down, and they showed why they are unbeaten in the conference. Memphis went on a 15-2 run to take control of the game and never looked back. Star freshman Tyreke Evans, scored 17 of his 26 points in the second half to lead the Tigers to victory.

“There’s a lot that we can take from this game,” said Doherty. “I don’t want moral victories, but there’s a lot we can take from this.”

The Mustangs next game is Saturday at 2 p.m. against Cal State Bakersfield in Moody Coliseum.